The campaigns for Queensland’s local government elections and Currumbin and Bundamaba state by-elections next Saturday are proceeding in the most trying of circumstances. My guides to the by-elections can be found on the sidebar; I’ll find something to say about the Brisbane City Council elections, which I have thus far neglected entirely, later this week. Updates:
• The Electoral Commission of Queensland relates that 560,000 postal vote applications have been received for the statewide local government elections, which compares with 260,680 postal votes cast at the previous elections in 2016. However, not all applications will result in completed votes being returned – the conversion rate in Queensland at last year’s federal election was 86.0%. There have also been more than 500,000 pre-poll votes, exceeding the 435,828 cast in 2016 with a week left to go. To those understandably reluctant to turn out on so-called polling day next Saturday, the commission has been expanding opening hours at pre-poll booths. All of which will make the results that come in on Saturday night particularly hard to follow.
• A ban has been imposed on the dissemination of how-to-vote cards and canvassing for votes at polling booths. Booth supervisors may allow the material to be displayed at the booths “in a manner deemed appropriate”.
Elsewhere:
• An international poll by Ipsos on attitudes to coronavirus finds 34% of Australians strongly agree, and 35% somewhat agree, with closing borders until the virus “is proved to be contained”, which is about average among the twelve nations surveyed. The survey has been conducted over four waves going back to early February, in which time the number of respondents identifying a very high or high threat to them personally has risen from around 10% to 23%. However, Australians recorded among the highest response in favour of the proposition that the media was exaggerating about the virus, which actually increased over the past fortnight from the high forties to 58%. A notable outlier in respect of all questions is Italy, where only 29% now say the media is exaggerating the threat, slumping from around 80%.
• Tasmanian Attorney-General Elise Archer announced this week that May 2 elections for the Legislative Council seats of Huon and Rosevears are “safe to proceed”, with “significant measures being put in place to maintain public safety”.
• A Roy Morgan SMS poll of 974 respondents asked whether respondents trusted or distrusted a list of current and former politicians that included Jacinda Ardern, but was apparently otherwise entirely Australian. All we are given at this stage is a top ten list of the best net performers, which is headed by Jacinda Ardern and otherwise notable for not including a single male conservative. However, this is all pretty useless without hard numbers, which will apparently be forthcoming “in coming days”.
I asked yesterday, so I’m not hopeful today, but does anyone know how many c19 test kits are left, nationally or locally even?
“Cud Chewersays:
Monday, March 23, 2020 at 12:03 pm
Italy now close to one diagnosed covid19 case per 1,000 people.
Australia at one diagnosed case per 15,800 people – but the real number of infections may be a number of times higher.”
Indeed, it almost certainly is. But cases in Italy are also most likely much higher than the reported numbers.
I work for a Norwegian company. They’re certainly not testing everyone over there. One person I work with is pretty certain they have it based on symptoms. As they’re young and healthy, no test for them.
Blobbit. Yes true.
1 in 1,000 is pretty scary in itself.
Lizzie,
The pain that the botched health and economic responses from Morrison will bring to millions of Australians will be long lasting and in many,many cases life threatening.
Morrison does not care about real people and the effects the next six to twelve months will have on this country. That is the sad part from all of this. He is simply now trying to cover his arse and sections of the media are actively supporting him.
The Australia that will unfold will not be the Morrison and media version no matter how many times it is repeated.
Cheers.
‘Steve777 says:
Monday, March 23, 2020 at 11:51 am
I think that a lot of the criticism of Sydney’s Friday beachgoers was over the top.’
The Right Wing commentariat were all over it. Classic Coalition hate object raves. They ‘forced’ Morrison to act. How selfish of them. There was also the hint of backpacker/foreigner in the tone.
By way of contrast there has been almost total silence on the church in Ryde that infected up to ten parishioners with social distancing behaviour that was either as bad as, or worse than, the Bondi Beach Huddlers.
“New Zealand is at its level three alert. In the next 24 hours, it will move to level four.”
Interesting that they have stated from the start what the levels of restriction will be and then advanced through them in a clearly defined manner. Makes you think there is some sort of overall plan. I wonder what that feels like?
Morrison’s stimulus seemed to have basically nothing in it if you’re not a business entity or someone who owns/operates a business entity.
Telling everyone else to raid their super was only ever going to encourge the share market to dive even further down. Which it has done.
So many questions. Here’s another. Should it be this hard to find the location of your local Fever Clinic? You don’t want them swamped, but crowd control is a thing.
FMD!
lizzie says:
Monday, March 23, 2020 at 8:00 am
Can anyone explain why hairdressers and beauty salons are allowed to keep trading through the shutdown? How can they practise social distancing?
————————————–
If closed then after six months we would look like a country of cousin itt.
Briefly:
South Australia has been testing all respiratory swabs for COVID-19, not just those that meet the infection criteria. That’s one reason why the numbers are so high, and also means there is a targeted sample (of the whole population for whom swabs are indicated).
Socrates
We have always known there are no clear thinkers in the LNP, but had no idea how right we were.
The NZ alert levels
Perhaps he’ll offer a gold watch to anyone who can sort out the mess.
And New York State isnt far behind Italy with its 15,790 cases on Worldometer today – equivalent to 0.81 cases per 1000
a r:
The endgame in Endgame C is “the dance”.
The dance goes on and on until the music stops.
E. G. Theodore @ #1466 Monday, March 23rd, 2020 – 12:29 pm
Or until this happens – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_plague_of_1518
Daughter has been in touch with work colleagues who are waiting in centrelink lines. Apparently due to at least attempts at social distancing in the lines, the queue is kilometres long.
Sigh……..
lizzie
I just knew having Bronwyn Bishop on the virus advisory panel was a mistake 🙂
From my daughters observation with people she is in contact with. They are mostly young.
They are not quite understanding the enormity of the pandemic in health terms.
Their focus is on loss of job and income
Player One:
A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to.
Follow the data.
Victoria
A generation of innocents.
Dr. David A. Lustig
@drdave1999
·
2h
Wait, what?!!
Word just broke that a few months ago, Trump fired a U.S. epidemiologist stationed in Beijing— whose job it was to detect outbreaks of disease in China!!
Trump needs to be held personally culpable for every American death from COVID-19.
Exclusive: U.S. axed CDC expert job in China months before virus…
Several months before the coronavirus pandemic began, the Trump administration eliminated a key American public health position in Beijing intended to help detect disease outbreaks in China, Reuters…
reuters.com
https://www.pollbludger.net/2020/03/22/pestilential-as-anything/comment-page-30/#comment-3367276
Sigh, why can’t the gov return all the income tax people paid since 1 Jul, it is not like we’ve had policy, competency or services …
Moreover, now’s a great time to shutdown Canberra ACT and offshore it to Ottawa or Singapore or Wellington!
https://mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN21910S?__twitter_impression=true
E. G. Theodore @ #1472 Monday, March 23rd, 2020 – 12:34 pm
Those countries that do best do not follow the data. They anticipate it.
The right will:
– Blame the victims.
– Play the victim.
– Cast those raising the alarm as the source of the problem.
– Sell their ideology as the only solution, having exaccerbated the problem in the first place.
So we have greenies and environmentalists responsible for the bushfires, and irresponsible Scomo haters (*cough* Labor and Greens voters *cough*) responsible for the spread of the virus.
Lizzie
Yes. There comes a time when lessons have to be learnt the very hard way.
Call me cray cray. But this pandemic has a very karmic feel to it.
Part of Morrison’s cringeworthy statement today:
@catmomma
I’ve been told by someone in a position to know that Woolworths are desperate for workers. Said if I know anyone to tell them not to bother to apply through usual channels but to front up to a Store and ask for a job directly.
Hope that works in your area.
Given the way this government has stigmatised the unemployed over the past 10 years and the punitive regime they have in place I’m not surprised the average young person currently thinks unemployment is worse than Covid-19.
In six months time this mob think that they’ll get to cancel the additional Corona virus payment and put everyone onto Job seeker allowance. I’d love to see them try, imagine throwing hundreds of thousands of people, who will find it difficult if almost impossible to survive on the supplimented $1065 a fortnight onto $515 a fortnight.
I think they’ll end up with rioting on the streets.
E. G. Theodore says:
Monday, March 23, 2020 at 12:25 pm
Briefly:
The choice is whether to test-and-trace or clamp. We’ve chosen to clamp. The cost will be measured in the hundreds of billions.
South Australia has been testing all respiratory swabs for COVID-19, not just those that meet the infection criteria. That’s one reason why the numbers are so high, and also means there is a targeted sample (of the whole population for whom swabs are indicated).
Thanks EGT. SA has info other States do not…I wonder if outcomes/management will be different in SA. Why SA only?….
lizzie
Agreed. I know my views of Scomo have in the past been negative, based on his behaviour to win office and many public lies. But while his defenders will try to say any critic is trying to score partisan political points and playing a game to get him removed from office, this time if he keeps screwing up a lot of people will die. So if he can’t do the job he needs to move aside and appoint a Covid 19 response chief who is credible and competent. Soon he will be called Scotty from Paliative Care.
Cud Chewer @ #1448 Monday, March 23rd, 2020 – 12:04 pm
Woolworths grocery deliveries will be the same.
After my question about Vets yesterday.
I rang our normal Vet’s this morning as my hearing assistance dog, Dusty, is due for vaccination soon.
At present they are open but only for urgent cases. They are not doing routine vaccinations.
I spoke to one of Vets and she said looking at his record he should be OK for the present.
Particularly as he is not going to be going to Dog Club or the Dog Park. We only see the occasional dog on our walks.
There are 2 other Vet surgeries in town. I am not keen to take him elsewhere, and am guessing they will all be in the same situation.
Just hope this is not going to take too long to get back to a level of normality.
Further big falls on stock markets this morning…ASX down 8% and back up somewhat….US futures down 4% ….
Socrates:
See:
– https://www2.health.vic.gov.au/about/publications/ResearchAndReports/covid-19-pandemic-plan-for-vic
for example – also has four stages, but they are different. Note also that this is targeted at the health sector, not the public.
Communication to the general public is clearly the responsibility of the Commonwealth (else confusion would ensue, as indeed it has). It has been unbelievably bad, for unexplained reasons. No doubt there are many explanations that can be asserted).
Victoria. Thanks for the link. It is frustrating journalism though. It uses “several months” when it could simply have said “in July”, and you have to read carefully to learn that the doctor left of her own accord two months before the position was due to end. No explanation is given as to why she left early beyond “when she learned her federally funded post … would be discontinued as of September.” (Perhaps she found a new job? Was no-one was appointed to replace her?)
laughtong
My dog had her annual shots Friday.
Because I’ve had sore throat/runny nose they got her from my car. When finished brought her back out with eftpos machine. Could have done direct transfer too.
My understanding is the heartworm shot needs to be done pretty well on time, other shots not so much.
Off facebook. So caveats apply.
There must have been a hell of lot of fornicatrion to lead to that much dancing – was nath involved?
Late Riser
Many positions that become vacant during Trumps administration, do not get refilled.
It is a feature, not a bug.
Now they are reaping what they have sown.
Americans have been utterly betrayed by their traitorous president and his enablers.
They should be hang drawn and quartered
EGT
Unexplained reasons ? Not really…………………….
lizzie
“ Can anyone explain why hairdressers and beauty salons are allowed to keep trading through the shutdown?”
That’s easy to answer. It’s because Morrison and Murphy are dangerously incompetent cretins.
Victoria, I agree. My complaint was directed at the journalism. Just a little more effort and it might have struck harder.
VP & laughtong
Yes, the main one actually lasts 3 years, according to what I have read, but it was ‘useful’ in the past for vets to insist on a yearly check up. Others added later may be locally necessary.
poroti @ #1495 Monday, March 23rd, 2020 – 11:55 am
He looks frightened and trying to hide it.
Late Riser
The US is now living through the pandemic
Trump and his fellow travellers are culpable for the delay in taking action. They have blood on their hands.